Guns at Starbucks: Armed and Awake

Some people love guns and some people who love guns love caffeine. In states where it’s legal to bear arms in public, it’s becoming popular for coffee-loving gun owners to wear their weapons at Starbucks. Naturally, controversy is brewing, and as CNNMoney so aptly put it, Starbucks is “caught in the crosshairs.”

Staying out of the crossfire

Some people hate guns and some people who hate guns love caffeine. Starbucks may be caught in the crosshairs, but so far it has stayed out of direct crossfire. In the 43 states where it’s legal to bear arms in public, businesses have the right to prohibit guns on their premises. Starbucks, however, has refused to do so. To the company’s credit, there has not been so much as one little shooting in any Starbucks coffee house.

Catching the wave

A gun is probably more expensive than a cup of coffee, even if you buy that cup of coffee at Starbucks. But if you’re interested in catching the wave of this new controversy, you might be able to buy a gun, a $4 cup of coffee, and a $2 pastry without borrowing money. If not, emergency cash loans are always an option.

Staying calm and collected

With guns in the coffee houses and anger all around, according to CNNMoney a calm and collected Starbucks spokesperson said, “Advocacy groups from both sides of this issue have chosen to use Starbucks as a way to draw attention to their positions. As the public debate continues, we are asking all interested parties to refrain from putting Starbucks or our partners in the middle of this divisive issue.”

Accessibility is the price of ubiquity

CNNMoney reports that gun-toting gatherings at Starbucks got underway in Northern California. When San Francisco-based Peet’s Coffee & Tea and California Pizza Kitchen started prohibiting firearms on their premises, armed gun-fans simply wandered across the street to Starbucks. Gun lovers can be nomadic sorts.

Another good reason to stay home

Acknowledging the fact that it has every right to ban firearms from its coffee houses, Starbucks has said that doing so might endanger employees charged with the unenviable task of asking coffee drinkers hunting for caffeine and armed with deadly weapons to leave the premises. Acknowledging the fact that I think it’s crazy for someone to carry a gun into a coffee house — no matter how badly he or she needs a caffeine fix — all this brouhaha makes me glad I neither work at nor patronize Starbucks.